Reliance Industries Limited’s 46th Annual General Meeting: Here’s what happened

Reliance Industries Limited held their 46^th Annual General Meeting, with the MD and Chairman Mukesh Ambani making some key announcements in the AGM. The meeting took place through video conferencing and was live streamed on YouTube and other social media platforms. Isha Ambani and Akash Ambani who hold official positions in the conglomerate also addressed the meeting and they also unveiled the company’s business blueprint in the future.

Reliance is one of the biggest employers

Mukesh Ambani started his speech at the AGM by congratulating ISRO for the success of Chandrayaan-3 and quoted our Prime Minister, saying that Mukesh Ambani says will continue as chairperson-MD for till 2028. Nita Ambani to remain on RIL board as a permanent invitee. He said that Reliance is one of the biggest employers with about 3.9 on-roll employees at RIL.

In his AGM speech, Mukesh Ambani said that Reliance Industries has cumulatively invested $150 Billion in the last 10 years, which is the highest by any corporate in the country. “Today, Jio 5G is present in 96% of India’s towns. Also, since being launched in 2016, Jio’s subscriber count stands at over 450 million. This is a revenue growth of 50%, as well as an average consumer use of 25GB per month,” said Mukesh Ambani.  

During his speech, Mukesh Ambani also mentioned the Q1FY24 performance and said, “I am delighted to report yet another year of stellar all-round performance. Reliance’s consolidated revenues stood at Rs 9,74,864 crore. Reliance’s EBITDA for FY23 was Rs 1,53,920 crore, while the net profit was Rs 73,670 crore.”

Meanwhile, Nita Ambani stepped down from the RIL board but will still technically remain on the RIL board as a permanent invitee. She instead recommended Isha, Akash and Anant to be in the RIL board. They were then added as Non-Executive Directors of the company with effect from the date of assumption of office after approval from shareholders, RIL said in a regulatory filing.

Mukesh Ambani also talked about 5G and installing one 5G cell to their network every 10 seconds. Ambani also announced Jio True5G lab and said that the platform will give access to partner solutions as well. He said, “Reliance Jio was launched 7 years ago with an ambitious mission: to transform India into a Premier Digital Society. Jio has been main catalyst of New India’s spectacular digital transformation. Now our ambitions go beyond the shores of India’

We began 5G rollout last October. In 9 months, Jio 5G is already present in over 96% of the census towns. And we are on track to cover entire country by Dec ’23. This makes Jio 5G the fastest-ever 5G rollout anywhere in the world.

Today, nearly 85% of total 5G cells operational in India are in Jio’s network. At our current pace, we are adding one 5G cell to our network every 10 seconds, and we will have nearly 1 mn 5G cells operational by December.”

Jio Chairman Akash Ambani also launched Jio Home services and said, “Our extensive Jio Fiber service already serves 10+ million customers, with thousands getting connected each month. With Jio AirFiber, we are expanding our addressable market to 200+ million homes and other premises”. He also said that Jio Bharat will empower small businesses and its UPI integration will help in receiving government support immensely and that it will also come with affordable value-added plans.

Isha Ambani also addressed the AGM and said, “We opened 3,300+ new stores last year, taking the total to 18,040, covering 6.56 cr sq.ft. Two-thirds of these stores are in Tier II, III and smaller towns, which is a testament to commitment of making retail inclusive.” “We have built retail business on principle of 4 Cs – Collaboration, Consumer engagement, Creativity, and Care. We reached milestone of partnering with more than 30 lakh merchants. We serve 98% of India’s PIN codes,” she added.

Mukesh Ambani also announced that Jio Financial Services will now enter insurance segment. “Jio Financial Services will accelerate replication of India’s dazzling growth story. In payments, JFS will ensure ubiquitous offering for both consumers and merchants, further driving digital adoption. JFS products will explore path-breaking features such as blockchain based platforms and CBDC,” he added.

Mukesh Ambani also mentioned that RIL is set to produce 30 million standard cubic metres of gas every day, which will be 30% of India’s production and 15% of the current gas demand. “At a time when global energy supplies and prices are witnessing unprecedented volatility and uncertainty, this gas is a major source of clean energy saving up to $7 billion per annum imports for our country,” said Mukesh Ambani.

Nita Ambani during her address of the AGM spoke of the contributions made by the Reliance Foundation in helping children and women overcome struggles and helping them reach new heights. She also spoke of the NMAAC and the broadway plays which took place at the venue. She also spoke of the artisans whose art and craft are on show at the NMAAC and called on people to support them. Since the opening of NMACC, we have welcomed over 20 lakh visitors. Will support 50,000 students through Reliance foundation over next 10 years, said Nita Ambani.

Bill Gates also made a special appearance in the AGM and spoke of the collaboration between Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Reliance Foundation. “I am very impressed not only by India’s innovation in science and technology, but also on the focus to deliver those innovations to those who need the most,” said Bill Gates.

“India has a proven track record of manufacturing high-quality, affordable drugs and vaccines for the country and the world. Through the foundation’s work with Reliance, we aim to support innovation and implementation at scale to develop drugs and point-of-care diagnostics. We’ll also continue to work with communities to support the government’s efforts to eliminate infectious diseases,” he added.

Towards the end of the AGM welcomed Isha, Akash and Anant to the AGM and also announced that he would stay the Chairman-MD for the next 5 years. “I shall continue to perform my duties and responsibilities as Chairman and Managing Director for five more years, with greater vigour,” said Mukesh Ambani.

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